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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (May 30, 2018)
SIUSLAW NEWS | WEDNESDAY, MAY 30, 2018 | 7A over the school resource officer beyond just answering ques- Bailey said. “Our children are prefers to handle situations. position from Florence Police tions. It is vital to help Bailey to safe.” The first instance was a van Bailey smiled and waved. Sgt. Brandon Ott, who had been do more investigative work. He There is a more common parked next to a group of over- The teens’ faces turned white. doing the job for a number of works closely with the staff of threat to children that he sees, grown Scotch Broom. Bailey got “She looked back at me and months. the school on issues, trading off one that is much more difficult out, knocked on the window. went, ‘Uh oh,’” Bailey said. The role was different from expertise in moments of crisis. to curb. Someone was sleeping inside. Twice in a row, it seemed that what Bailey had expected. “I also get involved with disci- “Social media is the worst,” He checked the license to make Bailey and his cohorts came too “I really liked being on the pline and I investigate anything Bailey lamented. “It’s hard to sure there was no criminal re- early. street, getting bad guys,” cord, then went back to Bailey assessed the situation he said. “It was a lot of fun. the van and handed them a so far. But being a resource officer “It’s kind of a weird spot for law enforcement in the card he had removed from “We’re doing our job, we’re with the kids is more chal- nation right now. You have bad cops, they’re in this his pocket. just doing it a little weird, a little lenging in ways.” “I just gave her the card world. But we have really good officers, especially in to Siuslaw Outreach Ser- early. Maybe they’ll just make The biggest challenge fearful better decisions. We was changing the percep- Florence. And we work well together.” vices for information,” Bai- — Brandon Bailey ley explained. “Just trying don’t know for sure if a party is tion that youth have of po- Florence Police Officer and to help her out.” going to happen. We want to let lice officers. Siuslaw School Resource Officer it get to a point where we can get “When we first got in There were lovers parked in and stop them from drinking the schools, kids were like, near the beach, looking out alcohol and then driving. But we ‘Uh oh, why are the police at the ocean. Bailey told don’t know if it will happen for here?” Bailey said. “It’s because criminal, like getting confes- deal with and combat. People them they might want to move sure, and we don’t have the re- we weren’t ever in the schools sions on stolen items,” he said. try, but they can’t stop using along. sources to sit outside every sin- unless somebody was in trouble. “Teachers may not be able to social media. They can’t stop There was family in crisis who gle house.” Over the course of this year, the get information out of a student, behaviors on social media. Kids wanted a quiet, safe place to It was decided to let the par- transition has been insane.” but with my tactics, I’m able to are always using it for the wrong work out their issues. Bailey and ties mature a bit, allow youth to Bailey described one of the get confessions and recover the reasons. They’ll bash each oth- Merryman checked on them, gather, and then come in and moments he knew that the property.” er on there and post a bunch of asking about their situation, make sure the party goers were students were beginning to be Because the students are com- stuff that they shouldn’t. It’s just making sure they were okay. acting safely and responsibly. more comfortable with him. It fortable with Bailey, his inter- hard. It’s all a bunch of drama Then there was the car full of In the meantime, Bailey and was an assembly at the elemen- actions in those instances are that’s easily avoidable.” 20-somethings who were driv- Merryman drove around town tary school. There was a tug of not combative, but supportive. One of the best ways to com- ing around the South Jetty. Bai- to the usual gathering sites — war, kindergartners versus the That relationship goes beyond bat that drama is to make sure ley had spotted them when they the North and South Jetties of fifth-graders. It was an exer- the boundaries of athe school that youth know adults are there had first pulled into the area and the Siuslaw River and the var- cise in courage, knowing that district. to support them, and that they followed them throughout the ious parks throughout the re- just because the odds seemed “When we go to a call involv- understand the issues they’re winding turns out to the beach. gion. stacked against you, you have ing kids at nighttime, the kids going through. When the car finally stopped, Along the way, Bailey spoke to have the nerve to give it a try are much more receptive to us “It seems like my presence, Bailey pulled alongside of them. to why he got into the police anyway. and not afraid,” he said. “And or the presence of a police of- “Do you know anywhere force, and the impact of being a “So it was the little kids I believe that’s the presence in ficer in uniform, motivates and we can go on the beach at this resource officer for the Siuslaw against these big fifth-graders,” school.” changes a kid’s behavior just by point?” the driver asked. School District. Bailey said. “Before they start He also plays an important simply being there,” he said. Bailey informed them that pulling, the staff offered a little role in threat assessments, de- And his presence also helps this was a day-use area. “Ah, okay, cool,” the driver ‘Our children are safe’ help. They come running over, termining if a child is physical- staff deal with the challenges of said as he laughed, relieved. “I “I was in the army for sev- and the whole school went wild. ly dangerous to themselves or the everyday life of a student. “The school also has been was wondering why you were en years,” Bailey said. “I was on I decided to run over too, and others. He was unable to give tanks, big rolling booms. De- they went absolutely bonkers. It specifics, but said that such oc- really awesome to work with,” following me.” Bailey said. “The staff and ad- The car moved along. ployed to Iraq for a year but de- was a lot of fun to see them re- currences are rare. It’s a different world for ministration have seen the ben- The patrol then made its way cided that wasn’t for me. I knew act. Luckily, at that age, kids still I wanted to be in something that like the police. It was really fun. youth today, and they are faced efit of having a police officer up to a campground at Sand was similar but didn’t want it to It was school to see the kids look with different challenges that in schools. There’s the security Dunes Frontier, where small so positively on the staff and would be unthinkable 20 years thing, but I have a different per- groups of vacationing ATVers take me away from my family.” ago. One of the most prevalent spective on things, a different were camping and chatting the He said he knew he wanted myself.” Now kids feel comfortable changes is the threat of school opinion on certain situations night away. to be a cop since he was “knee “We’re looking for teen drink- high,” so he applied for a posi- with asking Bailey a whole host shootings, which has thrust the that they’re dealing with collec- tion at the Florence Municipal of questions, from how many importance of resource officers tively. Through their experience ing for MIPs, seen any?” Bailey “bad guys” he’s sent to jail to like Bailey into the spotlight. It’s and me, we really work well to- asked. Jail. That was four years ago. “My kids are all adults now,” “I just knew that this job how many guns he owns. And these kinds of fears that can put gether.” Bailey is as much a resource to one woman joked. would be ever changing,” he of course, they like to ask him children in a perpetual state of the staff as he is to the students. They ended up chatting about said. “It wouldn’t be the same for stickers from the Florence panic. Police Department. “The school has taken good And the results of their efforts is why the campers were there — thing every day.” But building trust between law steps and measures to protect trust. tourists from out of town enjoy- He worked his way up to pa- “The kids will come up and ing the weekend. They offered trol and was then asked to take enforcement and students goes themselves, as far as security,” give hugs,” Bailey said with Bailey a hot dog. pride. “It’s actually illegal for us take food, ” Bailey explained later. The Rhododendron Festival Court is organized by the Florence Area Chamber of Commerce “We can’t take any kind of cof- ‘I like lalking but would not be possible without the many volunteers and sponsors . fee or food, or anything, which I lo people’ agree with. ” The day-use parks around the Giving a gift like food or cof- Siuslaw region are busier than fee to an officer could be con- one would think in the middle strued as a bribe. of the night. “It’s super awkward when As Bailey and Merryman someone is trying to buy you waited for the prom parties to coffee and you have to explain mature, they drove around look- why, ” he said. ing for other possible MIP in- It’s these kinds of interactions fractions. While they didn’t find that Bailey is most used to on his any teenagers, there were multi- patrol. Rhododendron Court Committee: Jenna Bartlett, Wendy Krause, ple cars sitting out in the moon- “It’s kind of a weird spot for light near the sandy beaches. It’s Dee Osborne, Katie Bartlett, Nancy Boskett, Jared Anderson law enforcement in the nation how Bailey interacted with these Jo Beaudreaux: Fundraising Coordinator right now. You have bad cops, individuals that showed how they’re in this world,” he said, Scholarship Sponsors: Alysha Atkinson Florence Police Department Dave T Construction Ty Beaudreau Al's Custom Docks Terry Abeyta TR Hunter Real Estate Kim Stinger Coastal Fitness Marc Bosket Chuck's Plumbing Melanie Jacobson Heard, CROW R & R King Logging CROW Flight Dancers: West Lane Plumbing Alex Fuller, Ashlyn Hart, Graci Immel, NW Inspection Services Kayla Rose, Joseph Shepherd, Siuslaw Newspaper Kristin Owens Coldwell Banker Coast Real Estate Isabella Ramirez Taylor Made Drywall & Construction Reanna Houlihan Fresh Harvest Café Victoria Schlager Shorewood Senior Living Glo Tanning and Hair Salon Tony's Garage Kristen Ankeny , Brit Rainwater Banner Bank Keelie Calvert Coronation Supporters: Angela Palmer Judges: Coast Guard Color Guard: Mayor Joe Henry, Petty Offi cer 3rd Class Makel Cunningham, First Citizen Rachel Pearson Petty offi cer 3rd Class Brooke Crosley, Past Queen Rhododendra Kay Robertson Seaman Aiden Belevich, Fireman Josh Radio Personality Wayne Sharpe Economide Honorary Judge Diane Conlew Bill & Cindy Grable Gene Cochran with the Rhododendron Society Court Supporters: Gary & Sharon Cargill Kay King @ Florence In Bloom Toastmasters Bones Nursery Banner Bank SH Embroidery Oregon Pacifi c Bank Crossroad Assembly Th e Siuslaw News George Henry Coast Radio business • homeowners • auto • life • health • medicare plans Mr. Mielke’s Cinema Studies class Brynne Sapp Matt Miller A SK US ABOUT M ULTIPLE P OLICY D ISCOUNTS ! RIDE ALONG from page 6A THANK YOU to all who helped to carry on this Florence tradition! We’ve got you COVERED COVERAGE FOR YOUR MOST PRECIOUS ASSET. YOU. Contact Angela, Jodi or Paul to discuss your policy needs. Serving Florence since 1990 875 Hwy 101 • Florence, OR • (541) 997-3466 www.AbelInsuranceAgency.com referring to the number of offi- cer-involved shootings in recent years. “But we have really good officers, especially in Florence. And we work well together.” And Bailey has found that the community has worked well to- gether, too, when it comes to law enforcement. Protecting a community is not about handing out tickets or arresting people, according to Bailey. It’s about being pro- active, making sure that officers interact positively with people before such measures are need- ed. And communicating is the key to that strategy. “I like talking to people,” he said. “That’s why I got into this.” But sometimes citations, like MIPs, have to be made. And it was for this reason that it was time to revisit the prom night house parties. ‘I call lhal a success’ The first stop was the city house, the one where the sin- gle car of kids was seen driving around. Bailey drove up the street, cut the lights and silently pulled up just a few doors down from the suspected house. He got out, looked around. Every- thing was quiet. There were a few lights on, odd for this time of night, but no loud noises or extra cars. No reason to be sus- picious of anything. While the gathering of youth for that party was suspect from the get go, the party outside city limits, the one with multiple car- loads of kids driving to, seemed like the surest bet for the night. A group of police cars, carry- ing about half a dozen officers, caravanned to the house just after 1 a.m. The cars traveled up the narrow road and came to an alcove in the small neigh- borhood. The officers parked, turned off their lights and quiet- ly exited their vehicles. The officers used no flash- lights as they pooled together, instead relying on the moon and a few various porchlights in the vicinity. They walked toward the ad- dress quietly, each one listen- ing for music, kids laughing and talking. Looking for multi- ple lights on in a house, and of course the cars they had already seen earlier. As they worked their way down the road, they all stopped and looked. The area was silent. No wind. No rain. Not even a cricket. And no party. Bailey smiled a bit, as did the others. They walked back to their vehicles, checked the neighborhood one more time and drove down the streets. They worked their way through the backwoods, checking small parks. Still no sign of the ulti- mate prom night party. That didn’t mean the night wasn’t successful for Bailey. “No MIPs means no intoxi- cated juveniles that I know of,” he said as he drove back to the station. Even though Bailey de- scribed how the evening went as “weird,” he believed the of- ficers came up to the parties at the right time. By seeing that the police were out on patrol, it’s possible that the parties end- ed before they even began. “Will I bury my head in the sand and say that we stopped it all?” he asked. “No way. But we did everything we could, and we were proactive as we could be.” It’s the presence of an active police force in the community looking out for the youth, and everyone else Bailey met that night, that may have ultimately been the deciding factor in the effort. “We put a lot of time in to- night, and we made a lot of contact,” Bailey said. “And we were visible. There was always a possibility we wouldn’t find anything, but I like that we were being proactive to deter dan- gerous behavior. If we stopped people from drinking, then we absolutely did our job. I think of it as a win for us. Hopefully the kids took our presence as something that deterred who knows how many kids from drinking. “I call that a success.”
